Another Beer
by hallemoojah
Summary: It's 2019 and the United States is in their second Civil War.  Brittany was drafted, and Santana was left at home.  Brittany and Santana are constantly miserable without each other.
1. Chapter 1

Santana's POV:

I sighed and reached for another beer. It had been two years since my girlfriend, Brittany, left for the second Civil War. After years of tension, the U.S. began to take their conflict of homosexuality to the battlefield. Some states wanted to outlaw gay marriage throughout the entire country, so they tried to rebel. Now, the whole country was at war. Brittany would have never gone to fight in a war; she hated violence. Unfortunately, she was drafted, and we couldn't afford to pay our way out of it.

Flashback:

_As I hugged Brittany for the last time, I couldn't let go. "San, I have to get on the train," Brittany whispered._

_ "I know," I sniffled. It killed me to let go of her. "Promise me you'll come back home?"_

_ "Not even the largest amount of blood will keep me from coming back home to you," she answered fiercely. She pulled me close to her and kissed me passionately. She stroked my hair. "Bye, baby."_

_ "Bye, Britt." I tried not to cry as she stepped on the train and the doors closed. I watched the train leave. Long after it was gone, I still stared at the tracks, as if some miracle would bring the train back. After another hour, it was clear that I would not be seeing Brittany for a long time. On the drive home, I cried non-stop. I cried through my dinner. That night when I went to bed, I cried next to the empty pillow on the bed. _

_ My eyes were red and puffy the next morning. I washed my face and decided to get a beer to cheer myself up. I walked to the bar across the street. The waitress brought me a large glass of foamy beer. I drank it slowly. It tasted so damn good! I was about to slide the beer over to the other side of the table, but then I remembered that I had no one to share it with. I poured the beer into my mouth, so I could distract myself with the amazing taste. That day, I promised myself that I would never cry again. But the only way I could keep myself from crying was by drinking._

"Oh San, you're so silly when you get drunk!" Brittany's voice popped into my brain as my head started to hurt and I stumbled off the chair. She'd definitely be ashamed to see how much I was drinking these days. She liked to drink, too, but she'd never drink all the time like I was. The thought of Brittany made my eyes moist. Don't fucking cry! I took another huge gulp out of my cup, and my eyes drooped.

Brittany's POV:

I followed General Garfield into a cheap saloon in Alabama. General Garfield ordered a big foaming cup of beer. It reminded me of the beer that Santana loved. I asked for one, too. If I was with Santana, we would giggle and share the drink. I put my elbow up on the counter and leaned my head on my hand. I missed Santana so much. It had been so long since we got our sweet lady kisses on. I continued to drink my beer. The only reason I drank so much is because having Santana's favorite drink on my lips was the closest thing I could get to kissing her.

"Thinking about your girl again?" General Garfield asked knowingly.

"Yeah," I sighed.

"Well to get out of this depressing mood, why don't you tell me that story of how brave your girlfriend was in high school?" she suggested with a smile.

"Alright. During our senior year, this giant named Finn Hudson just shouted in the middle of the hallway 'When are you gonna come out?' A girl in the hallway happened to hear him, and she told her uncle, who was a candidate. Then he called her a lesbian in his campaign commercial. After that day, guys would stare at her as if she had three eyes. Girls on the Cheerios refused to change in a locker room with a lesbian. But Santana wouldn't let them bully her. She cut them with her vicious words!" My voice grew more confident as the story continued. I was still proud of the way Santana had acted during our senior year. "The most painful part for her was coming out to her Abuela. Her Abuela felt very uncomfortable about having a lesbian in her family, so she told Santana she never wanted to see her again. But when Abuela was in the hospital for the last few weeks of her life, she started to call everyone Santana. She begged for Santana. Santana visited her Abuela. Her last words were 'Santana, I love you…no matter who you love.'"

General Garfield dabbed her eyes with a napkin. "You must be really proud to have a girlfriend like that," she said softly.

"I am," I replied. Even though I'd told that story several times, it still made my eyes water. No, stop. I couldn't cry. I hadn't cried since the day I left Santana. I drank more beer to distract myself. Santana would have thought I was a hypocrite, since I was always telling her not to drink obsessively. But this was the only way I could keep myself from crying.

Santana's POV:

I felt a nudge to my shoulder. "Hon, the bar is closing in a few minutes," the waitress said to me.

"Oh, I'm sorry. I must have passed out," I apologized.

"It's okay sweetie. It happens to everyone." She helped me up and opened the door for me.

It was really dark outside. I couldn't tell how long I'd been asleep. I went into my small house. I didn't even bother changing my clothes. I was too tired. I climbed into our, I mean my, bed and stared at the emptiness on the other side. That empty half of the bed had tortured me for two years. Why didn't I just move my pillow to the middle of the bed so I wouldn't have to feel that way anymore? I slid my pillow over and closed my eyes.

"Baby, you're crushing me!" a familiar voice in my head laughed. It was Brittany's voice again. Reluctantly, I moved my pillow back to its original spot. I guess I would have to continue to be tortured by the empty side of the bed. My heart physically ached as I slowly drifted to sleep.


	2. Chapter 2

Brittany's POV:

I was peacefully sleeping when a cold splash of water hit my face. "Shit! That's freezing cold!" I screamed.

Two muscular girls were standing in front of me and laughing. I sighed. Although we were on the same side, Janice and Regina seemed to love torturing me. "Looks like Britts was drinking her ass off again last night!" they cackled.

Britts. That name made me tense up. I only let Santana call me by that name. I slid my boots on and picked up my rifle. Insanity took over, and I found myself pointing the rifle at them. My hands trembled on the gun. "Don't call me that!" I said furiously.

Janice and Regina exchanged worried glances. "Calm yo tits, girly!" Regina scolded in a taunting manner.

"I like to call us SanTITany, because girl, have you seen our tits!" I heard Santana's voice in my head.

I threw the rifle down on the floor and shoved Regina. "Stop fucking reminding me of her! You don't have to rub it in my face that you two are together, and I'm here all alone without Santana!" I yelled hysterically.

Janice and Regina looked completely baffled. I continued to punch and kick them. "Ladies, stop it! What the hell is going on here?" a powerful voice bellowed. It was General Garfield. I looked down at my feet in shame. "Regina, Janice, could you two please leave for a minute?"

Crap. This would not be good. "Brittany, I'm shocked. Do you remember what you told me when I first met you?" she asked.

"That I hated violence," I mumbled. "I'm sorry, General Garfield. I really am. It's just that when I see Janice and Regina laughing together, it makes me jealous. They're the kind of people who can be best friends and lovers at the same time. Santana and I were always like that."

General Garfield gave me a long stare. "I understand, Brittany. I know you're going through a lot of pain without her, but you can't keep taking it out on other people. Now I don't ever want to see this happen again, clear?"

"Yes, General," I said sincerely.

Santana's POV:

I woke up and looked down at my shirt. It had a large beer stain on it. I must have been too tired to notice it last night. I rummaged through my closet only to realize that all my clothes had beer stains on it. I hadn't washed any of my clothing in a long time. My eyes drifted over to the closet on the other side of the room. I hadn't opened Brittany's closet since the day she left. Slowly, I walked over to her closet. My hands shook as I turned the knob and opened it.

The first thing I saw was an asymmetrical purple dress. It was the one Brittany had worn to our senior prom. She insisted on keeping it, even after high school. I remembered the pride I felt on the night of our senior prom with Brittany on my arm. The memory was too much for me, so I moved the dress to the back of the closet.

Then, another outfit caught my eye. It was a thin, black tunic with floral leggings. I froze. That was the outfit Brittany wore on our last day together. Without thinking, I threw off my old clothes and put Brittany's outfit on. Wearing her clothes made me feel like she was somehow with me. For the first time in two years, I actually smiled. I went into my small kitchen. Maybe I would have a normal meal for breakfast instead of just drinking. I looked in the cabinets and saw old, disgusting apples and bananas. I grimaced as I dumped the fruit into my trash can. I looked in the can and realized how high the trash was piled.

The dirty clothes, the rotten fruit, the trash pile. These were all signs of how badly Brittany's departure had affected me! I could barely take care of myself anymore! This realization should have made me determined to shape up, but instead it just made me even more depressed. And there was only one thing that decreased my depression: beer. Reluctantly, I walked across the street to the bar again.

Brittany's POV:

After my talk with General Garfield, I felt a little better. Maybe I would even try to have a more positive attitude towards Janice and Regina. I tried to approach them and apologize for the way I had spoken to them before. As I got closer, I realized they were making out. They were "getting their mack on" as Santana would call it.

"Come on, Britts. I wants to gets our mack on!" Santana used to say to me. Suddenly, my heart began to hurt. I missed "getting my mack on" with Santana.

My body felt stiff as I approached Janice and Regina. "Apologize!" said a voice in my head.

"Don't! Why should you be nice to those flaunting bitches?" another one said. I mentally swatted the innocent voice away and decided to take the devil's advice.

Janice and Regina eventually broke apart when they realized that I was looking at them. They gave me a look of fear, like I was two-headed monster. I just gave them a mean glare and stomped away from them. I tightly squeezed my eyes closed. I could feel tears starting to form. But no, I couldn't cry. I hadn't cried for two years, and I didn't plan on crying now. There was only one way I could distract myself. I would have to go back to that cheap saloon again.


	3. Chapter 3

Santana's POV:

At the bar, I saw the same waitress who was working the other day. When I sat down, she smiled warmly at me. "You're a regular customer, eh?"

"Yeah, I come here almost every day," I responded. "Can I have light beer, please?"

"Sure!" she said enthusiastically. In less than a minute, she was back with a frothy cup of beer. "Do you want some fries or something?"

I frowned. I barely ate or drank anything else besides beer these days. Plus, the beer was getting expensive, so I couldn't really afford other things. "No, thanks," I sighed.

The waitress studied me closely. She disappeared into the kitchen and came out a few minutes later. She set a plate of fries and a burger with barbecue sauce in front of me. I pushed the plate back to her. "No, it's fine. I'm not hungry," I insisted. My stomach made a loud growling noise.

The waitress stared at me skeptically. "Mhm, not hungry at all!" she said sarcastically. "Look, you can have it for free."

Damn, this woman was stubborn! "I don't want to get you in trouble," I argued.

She threw her head back and laughed. "Ha! I don't give a fuck what the boss thinks! Besides, he can't fire me! I'm the only one here who gives service with a smile!"

"Fine," I replied grouchily. I dipped a fry into a small dish of barbecue sauce and put it in my mouth. The saltiness of the fry and the sweetness of the barbecue sauce tasted so strange. They were nothing like the taste of beer. Then I took a bite out of the burger. It had been forever since I ate meat. The texture of the burger felt unusual on my tongue. After a few more bites, I got used to the flavor. I finished the rest of the food. I looked at the waitress gratefully. "Thanks," I said sincerely.

"It's no problem, honey!" She extended her hand out to me. "I'm Emily, you?"

I shook her hand. "Santana, Santana Lopez."

"That's an adorable name! So how old are you? I'm twenty-eight."

"I'm turning twenty-five soon." I pretended to be fascinated with the cup of beer, hoping that it would make Emily stop trying to create a conversation.

A nostalgic look came into Emily's eyes. "Ah, I remember when I was twenty-five," she said softly. I nodded. God! What would it take to shut this woman up? "That's when I realized I was a lesbian." I almost choked on my beer. I began coughing wildly. A cold look passed over Emily's face. "Oh, I'm sorry. I didn't realize you were a homophobe."

My face turned as red as a cherry. "No! No! I'm not homophobic at all! Actually, I'm gay, too!" I tried to explain to her.

Her expression softened. "Well, that's a relief. So many people out there hate me just because I like girls," she sighed. "When I was your age, I met a gorgeous girl named Luna. She had silky blonde hair and pretty turquoise eyes. She was an amazing dancer." Emily seemed to be daydreaming.

A lump formed in my throat. This Luna girl sounded a lot like Brittany. "I'll be right back," I said quickly. I ran into the bathroom. I rushed into one of the stalls and slammed the door shut. Then I sat on the toilet and held my head in my hands.

Brittany's POV:

General Garfield told us that we could get a drink. I asked her to take us to the cheap saloon again. She looked at me suspiciously. She shrugged and said, "Sure."

I sat down and impatiently waited for my beer to come. Images of Santana flowed through my brain. I slapped my forehead, but I couldn't stop thinking about her. General Garfield raised an eyebrow at me. Shit, I must have looked so stupid. I turned away, and luckily, my beer had arrived. I drank it quickly and asked for another. Finally, I had been distracted. I was starting to feel dizzy. A demented burp came out of my mouth. I shoved my hand over my mouth as I realized that Janice and Regina had seen me. They seemed to be stifling giggles, but I didn't think they would mess with me after this morning's incident.

My head was aching painfully. I looked down and saw that my glass was empty again. How much had I been drinking? I must have lost count! I yawned and slumped over on the chair. My eyelids slowly lowered.

Dream:

_I opened my eyes, and I was sleeping with the rest of my troop. Suddenly, I heard an upbeat tune outside of the tent. I threw my blanket off and sat up. I recognized that song! It was "Valerie." Santana sang that at sectionals of our junior year. "Well, sometimes I go out by myself and I look across the water…" That raspy, sexy voice was so familiar! Could it be Santana? A hot Latina danced towards me. Holy shit, it was Santana! "And I think of all the things, what you're doing. And in my head I paint a picture." She was wearing a forest green dress that reached just below her vagina. I could see her lace panties. The neckline of the dress was really low, and I was pretty sure she wasn't wearing a bra. "Cause since I've come on home, well my body's been a mess. And I miss your ginger hair and the way you liked to dress. Won't you come on over? Stop making a fool out of me! Why don't you come on over Valerie?"_

_ I jumped up and started to dance with her. I slapped her ass the beat of the music. "Valerie!"_

_ "Why don't you come on over?" I sang._

_ "Valerie, Valerie," she continued. "Did you have to go to jail? Put your house on up for…" She stopped abruptly. She grabbed my face and kissed me hard. She placed her lips on my neck and moved her hands all over my body. I kissed back and then softly placed my lips on her ear._

_ "Baby, I've missed having you in my bed," I whispered seductively._

_ She looked down at my sleeping bag. She winked at me. "Close enough," she whispered back. She laid herself down on my sleeping bag, and I positioned myself on top of her. We kissed for a long time. My hands started to travel to the straps of her dress. I was about to undo the zipper on the back of her dress._

A glass fell to the floor and shattered. Startled, I opened my eyes quickly. "Fuck," I muttered to myself. I was just getting to the best part of my dream.

A petite man with a lame Pedo Bear tattoo swept up the broken glass. "Sorry, I'll be more careful next time," he apologized timidly.

I sighed and laid my head down on the counter. I squeezed my eyes shut, wishing that my sex dream about Santana would come back. As hard as I tried, I couldn't fall asleep again.

Santana's POV:

I did my business and finally decided to come out of the bathroom. As soon as I opened the door, Emily was standing there. I jumped back in shock. "Santana, I was getting worried about you! Why were you in here for so long?"

"I'm fine. I was just, uh, changing my Kotex pad," I lied. I don't think Emily believed me, but she didn't say anything. As I washed my hands, I could see her staring at me in the mirror. I turned around. "What?"

"You just seem upset. Are you okay?" she asked.

"Yean, I'm fine." I walked out of the bathroom and slung my purse over my shoulder.

"Where are you going?" Emily followed me.

"Home," I replied curtly. "Look Emily, you're nice, but I'm not in a talking mood. I'm sorry."

"Alright, see you around?" she said sadly. I nodded and forced a smile to make her feel better. "Bye!" she called out while waving.

I pushed open the door and left. A cold breeze blew at me. I shivered and tried to cover my arms. If only Brittany could be here to keep me warm…

* * *

><p><strong>Still waiting for reviews!<br>**

****Oh and here's a spoiler for the next chapter: Mercedes will be in it.****


	4. Chapter 4

Brittany's POV:

I placed my few belongings in my dusty duffle bag. General Garfield had announced that it was time for our troop to leave Alabama and head to Alaska. I had one more item to place into the bag. It was flat and white. I flipped it over. My heart sunk. It was a picture of me and Santana in our matching fuzzy hats. Santana was planting a kiss on my cheek in the picture. I had my head leaned towards her. I stared at the picture for a while until General Garfield scolded, "Hurry up, Pierce!"

I looked at the picture for another second and kissed it. Then I put it in my duffel bag, and zipped it up. I tied the laces on my boots and held my rifle tightly. I joined the rest of my troop as we departed our camp. It would be a long journey to Alaska. I groped my duffel bag, trying to feel the photograph. That's what would give me courage on this long, exhausting trip. First, we would take a flight to Sacramento. Then, we had to travel on land to the coast of California. Finally, we would get on a ship to Alaska.

Four hours later, we were sitting on the plane. Being on an airplane brought back memories for me. After senior year, Santana and I had gone to Disney World. Let's just say that our flight was one wild ride!

Flashback:

_ The safety speech was over, thank God! Santana and I were snickering throughout the entire thing. Santana put an expression of mock fear on her face. "Maybe we should have sex one more time, since this plane will crash and kill us all!" she cried dramatically. _

_ I laughed and smacked her playfully. "Oh shut up, Sanny! You can't be drooling over my boobs on an airplane! There are other people here!"_

_ Santana laughed and rolled her eyes. "Me drooling over your boobs? No, baby. I think it'll be the other way around!" She moved her arms apart to give me a clear view of her tits. Then she flipped her hair over her shoulder and blew me a kiss._

_ My eyes stayed glued to her boobs for a few seconds. I glared at her. "Tease!" I complained as I gave her a light push._

_ Santana smirked and started to shimmy, causing her breasts to jiggle. "You like this?" she asked sweetly. "Face it, you want these!"_

_ I pretended to be pissed at her but then I broke down into laughter. I moved my face close to hers and breathed lightly on her nose. Her lips were like a magnet, pulling me towards them. I pursed my lips and started to peck her lightly. Santana kissed back once and then pulled away. "Honey, this isn't hot enough for me," she whispered._

_ I wrinkled my forehead. She was licking her lips. She wouldn't go there, would she? Too late. Before I knew it, my hand was stroking her hair and I had my lips pressed up against her face. Santana traced her fingers behind my ears, sending chills through my body. Her lips felt so good against mine. I nudged her gently with my tongue. She smiled and opened her lips, letting my tongue through. "Panties coming off soon!" she giggled._

_ "Hem hem." Startled, we broke apart and turned our heads around. A short stewardess with curly brown hair was rolling her eyes at us. Her name tag said "Dolores." "We have some children on this plane. Please keep it PG," she requested in a falsely sweet voice. She gave us a deathly smile and turned around._

_ "Boo you, whore!" Santana muttered under her breath. "What kind of name is Dolores anyway? Ugh."_

Well, there would be no making out on this flight.

Santana's POV:

I felt really bad about the way I had acted around Emily yesterday. Maybe I should go back and be nicer to her this time. Ten years ago, I would have never thought about being nice to someone!

At the bar, the seats and the counter were really crowded. There was only one available chair left. It was next to a large woman with dark, shiny hair. I usually tried to sit far away from other people, but I guess I didn't have a choice today. I sat down next to the large woman and waited for Emily to come.

"Santana Lopez?" the woman gasped. I studied her for a few seconds. She looked really familiar. In front of her, she had a plate of tater tots. Hmm…tater tots. Mercedes Jones!

"Mercedes!" I hugged her. Before Brittany left, I kept in touch with the rest of my Glee friends on the phone or by email. After Brittany left, I stopped texting and emailing people.

"Oh my God, Santana! It's been so long! How are you?" Mercedes asked.

"Well, actually I'm not so good. Brittany was drafted…." It hurt too much to talk about Brittany, so I hoped I didn't have to elaborate.

Mercedes put a hand on my shoulder. "Aw, I'm so sorry, girl."

I shrugged. "So, Mercedes, how have you been?"

Mercedes beamed. "Well, I'm a pop singer now. I have a new hit single! It's called 'Fried Stripper.'"

"Fried Stripper?" I snorted. "Is this about tater tots?"

"You bet!" she cheered. Emily came out of the kitchen. "Hey, Emily, can I get a beat?"

"Sure!" Emily grinned.

Mercedes began to sing. "Fried stripper, fried, fried stripper. Tater tots! Fried stripper, fried, fried stripper. Them tots! Fried stripper, fried, fried stripper. Those fried stripper tots!" She paused awkwardly and then frowned. "Artie is supposed to be rapping the next part of the song. I don't really like to rap."

Emily jumped up eagerly. "I know that part! And I love to rap!" She cleared her throat and pumped her fist in the air. "Oh shit, there's an orgy in my mouth! When I eat tots, my hands travel south! So crispy, and so brown. You makin' my stomach get round!"

I laughed loudly. "We have a new Rebecca Black!" I joked.

Mercedes laughed and then turned to me. "You know Santana, you should come hang out with our old Glee friends some day. I'm having a party on February 14th. Please come?"

February 14th. That was Valentine's Day. I would be spending Valentine's Day without Brittany. I hoped this party didn't involve dates. "Sure," I replied reluctantly. I didn't want to disappoint Mercedes.

Mercedes hugged me warmly. "Thanks! It'll be so great to have the Glee club all together again!" Then she saw me frowning. "Well, except for…" she said softly.

"Yeah," I responded awkwardly.

"Free beers on me?" Emily chimed in, breaking the awkward silence.

Mercedes and I nodded and thanked Emily.

Brittany's POV:

The plane slowly landed. I lifted my head off the back of the seat and stared out the window. Sacramento was just as dreary as Alabama. Groggily, I rubbed my eyes and unbuckled my seat belt. I retrieved my small duffle bag from under the seat.

"Okay, ladies! Let's go!" General Garfield shouted. We followed her lazily. I had no idea how she managed to have so much energy.

After we got off the plane, I realized that my duffle bag was partly unzipped. I panicked. I threw the bag down on the ground and rummaged through it madly. Where was my photograph? I dug through the bag. Finally, I found the picture at the bottom of my bag. I hugged it to my chest and sighed out of relief. I put the picture back in the bag and made sure to seal it tightly this time.

As if I wasn't exhausted enough already, we now had to take a train to San Francisco. I was so tired that I practically collapsed into my seat on the train. Because I sat down so roughly, a patch on my pants ripped. It didn't make much of a difference. My uniform was ugly anyway. I hated all of this. Back in high school, I was such a cheerful and spirited girl. Now, here I was on a dreadful train, wearing a dreadful uniform, holding a dreadful gun. I felt discouraged, so I reached for my duffle bag and pulled out the photograph. I stroked the spot on the picture where Santana's face was. "I miss you," I whispered to the picture. I continued to stroke the picture for the rest of the train ride.


	5. Chapter 5

Santana's POV:

Seeing Mercedes made me realize how much I missed the rest of my Glee friends. I missed Blaine's hideous bowties. I missed Rachel's pathetic reindeer sweaters. I missed Quinn's serial killer eyes. Hell, I even missed Finn's ugly Cabbage Patch Kid face! I dusted the screen on my desktop computer that hadn't been turned on for months. Then I turned it on.

After the computer started up, I logged onto Tumblr. My URL was "lebaneseforbritt." I looked at my blog and realized that my last post was seven months ago. I went back to my dashboard and scrolled. Someone named "iamnumberwah" had reblogged several pictures of Victoria's Secret models. I laughed. Of course, it was Puck! Someone named "broadwayberry" had posted several videos of herself singing. It was Berry, my favorite hobbit! I scrolled for what seemed to be miles and smiled as I started to remember all my old friends.

I created a text post. "_Hey." _I wrote. I couldn't think of what else to say, so I just published it. After one refresh, a red 6 popped up from my inbox. I read the messages.

One was from Rachel. "SANTANA! OH MY GOD I HAVE MISSED YOU SO MUCH! HOW ARE YOU? IT FELT SO WEIRD GOING THROUGH A DAY WITHOUT BEING MOCKED ABOUT MY HEIGHT OR MY NOSE!" Oh, Rachel and her caps lock key.

"I miss you too, dwarf ;)" I replied.

Another message was from Blaine. "HI SANTANA. OMG I heard you're going to Mercedes's party yay this is going to be the best party ever so organic!" I rolled my eyes, but at the same time I was grinning from ear to ear.

"That's what you said at Rachel's party! I think the hair gel is damaging your hobbit brain!" I typed back.

More messages popped into my ask box, and I continued to answer them. After I thought I had finished all of them, another one came. "How's Brittany?"

Brittany's POV:

I got off the boat and began to shiver. I hated Alaska already. I tucked my pants into my boots, hoping that it would make me feel warmer. I shivered as I walked with the troop. "Pierce! Stand up straight! You've got to have confidence!" General Garfield barked.

I struggled to keep my hands at my sides as a cold gust of wind blew at me. The strong wind caused trees to tilt over. A sharp twig hit my face. I held my hand up to the spot on my cheek that the twig hit. A few drops of blood were on my finger. I sighed and wiped the blood off my cheek with my sleeve. I'd been through several minor injuries during the past two years, but I had to learn to just keep going.

"Dude! Is that the lesbian army?" I heard a deep voice shout. My body tensed up. I did not like being called the "lesbian army."

"Yeah, man! I think it is!" another voice answered.

Their voices sounded intimidating. I was starting to feel uncomfortable. I didn't like to go by stereotypes, but they sounded like gangsters. The two men started jeering at us. "Yo, lesbos! Why you so gay? Is it 'cause you ain't hot enough to gets yo'self a man?" they snorted.

The other girls scowled but didn't look at them. I made the mistake of glaring at them. I shot daggers from my eyes at them. I continued to glare for a minute. The two men nudged each other. Uh oh. They pounded their fists into their palms as they came towards me. "We got a brave lesbian over here? Let's see what you got," one of the men growled.

I backed away and reached for my gun, but it was too late. They threw me to the ground with such a great force that I started to feel dizzy. They put their hands into their large pockets and pulled out a small gun. I thought they wouldn't be able to cause that much damage to me, but I was wrong. They shot several times at me, hitting my elbow and my neck. "Agh!" I screamed in agony. "No! Stop!" I begged.

Blood poured out of the wounds. My elbow and neck stung. My vision was fading. The last thing I heard was General Garfield barking at the men before everything went black.

Santana's POV:

My heart sunk. I had hoped that Mercedes would have told them what happened for me. My fingers trembled over the keyboard. I couldn't take it. Without thinking, I pushed the power button on my screen and ran out of the room. I grabbed a jacket and stormed to the bar.

I sat hastily and called for Emily. "Beer," I requested quickly. She frowned but brought me a cup anyway. I drank it angrily. I squeezed my eyelids down, trying to keep the tears from pouring out. As the taste of the beer soaked into my tongue, I finally felt better. After a long sip, I placed the cup back on the counter.

Emily was looking at me with a serious expression. "Santana," she said solemnly. "I kind of listened in on your conversation with Mercedes yesterday. Look, you really need to stop."

I raised my eyebrows. "Stop what?" I demanded.

"You know what I'm talking about! You can't keep drinking to get over the pain of not having Brittany with you!" she explained exasperatedly.

"What?" I cried. "You don't know anything about me! Stop trying to tell me what I should be doing with my life! The moment I met you I knew that you were a meddler. Always in other people's business! Well, I don't want your fucking help. Stop being such a damn pusher!" I put my head down on the counter.

Emily watched me regretfully. She went into the kitchen and returned to the counter with a small plate of shrimp and cocktail sauce.

I laughed, "Are you trying to bribe me with food?"

Emily rolled her eyes. "Eat," she ordered. Surprisingly, I obeyed. "Santana, I've worked at this bar for four years. You're not the first person I've seen who drinks to distract herself from emotional pain. But it's just not healthy. So what if you cry about Brittany once in a while? It's okay. You need to get all that pain out."

I pulled a piece of shrimp out of my mouth and dumped it on the plate. Then I just sobbed. I let out all the tears that I had been holding in for two years. I let the tears cascade down my face. I let my body shake with sadness. Emily sat there and patted my back. "Good, it's okay. Let it out," she whispered to me. After an hour, I sniffed and wiped up my last tears with a napkin.

"Thanks. You're right. I really did need to do that," I admitted.

Emily smiled sadly at me. "Well Santana, I like having you around here so I'm not kicking you out. But promise me one thing. Don't come here every day just to drink beer. If you do want to come, please just eat some food instead of drinking, okay?"

"I promise," I agreed. I put my coat on and hugged Emily. "Thanks again," I told her. She waved at me as I walked out of the bar.

At home, I turned the computer on again. Emily had given me the courage to tell everyone what happened. I clicked on my inbox and read the message again. "How's Brittany?" This time I took a deep breath and typed an answer. I was about to click answer privately, but then I changed my mind. I clicked publish. The former Glee club members were my friends, and they all deserved to know. As I watched the published post appear on my dashboard, I smiled proudly.


	6. Chapter 6

Santana's POV:

Last night, I cried into my pillow. But Emily was right. I really did need to cry. This morning, I told myself I would eat a real meal. First, I took a quick shower and got dressed. Before I selected my clothes, I looked at myself naked in the mirror. My arms looked like toothpicks. My stomach was completely flat. I could see my ribs poking out beneath my breasts. My legs were so thin that I could put my hand around my ankle. I stared straight into my face in the mirror. I had dark bags under my eyes. My nose was red and puffy. If my Glee friends saw me now, they'd never believe I was the same hot bitch from high school.

Flashback:

_"Hurry up, babe! I wanna go to Breadstix! I'm hungry!" Brittany whined. _

_ I heard footsteps and knew she was heading towards my bathroom. "Hang on, Britts. This bitch just needs a little more sexifying!" I shouted. I smirked as I hooked the clasp on my navy blue bra. I slipped on matching string bikini underwear._

_ "Santana! Let's go!" she complained. I heard the doorknob handle turn and quickly threw on an oversized sweatshirt. The door opened. Brittany gaped at my bare legs. I let my arms hang by my sides, and the sweatshirt fell off my shoulder. She wrinkled her forehead in confusion. "Did Breadstix turn into a stripper club?"_

_ I shook my head. "Sweetie, we ain't going to Breadstix tonight!" I tugged on her arm and lead her out of the bathroom. I brought her to my bedroom and stretched out on the bed. I combed my hair out of my face with my fingers. "What are you waiting for? Get on!"_

_ Brittany looked down at her feet. "Baby, you don't have to be embarrassed. Come in! I know you want to," I teased._

_ Brittany bit her lips to stop herself from grinning and pounced onto the bed. She kissed my neck and pulled at my sweatshirt. I threw it off my head and grabbed her face. Each kiss got more passionate. I eyed Brittany's chest and realized that she didn't have a bra under her tank top. I played with the straps on her shirt, and she took the hint. Her top was tossed onto the floor. "Your turn," she whispered. I looked down and realized she didn't even have to take it off. We had gotten so wild that my bra strap was ripped, and my boobs were dangling out of it. "Oops!" Brittany snickered. "I guess I'll have to go for your panties instead!"_

_ She pulled at my underwear, and I gracefully slid my legs out. Brittany stopped to admire me for a few seconds. "Damn," she muttered to herself._

_ "What? It's not like this is the first time you've seen it," I told her._

_ Her eyes were getting damp. "You're just so beautiful, Sanny. I'm so lucky to have the hottest girl in the world as my girlfriend."_

The hottest girl in the world wasn't so hot anymore. I frowned at the reflection in the mirror. Finally, I turned away and put on clothes. I walked into my kitchen and remembered that I had to throw out all the rotten food. I opened the refrigerator and saw nothing but a cup of yogurt. Miraculously, it wasn't expired yet. I ate the yogurt for breakfast and made a mental note to myself to buy some food later. I was going to get my act together and turn myself back into the beautiful girl that Brittany loved.

Brittany's POV:

I woke to the sound of feet shuffling and papers rustling. I opened my eyes and saw doctors walking in and out of the room. One tall doctor had a clipboard in his hand. He looked over at me. "Oh, you woke up! Sorry, I didn't notice," he apologized.

"Huh..what? What's going on?" I mumbled. My left arm was wrapped up and my neck was covered in bandages.

"Well, first I'd like to know if you remember what happened," he said.

I blinked and tried to think hard. "I was shot, I think," I replied. "A bullet hit my elbow, and one hit my neck. And then…then..there was blood. But then I couldn't see anything. And now I'm here."

The doctor nodded. "Yes, you lost so much blood that you passed out," he explained. "We've examined your arm, and it appears that the bullet fractured bones in your elbow and neck. You're actually quite fortunate. Getting shot, not to mention getting shot twice, often leads to death."

"Santana," I whispered weakly.

The doctor looked confused. "Pardon?"

"My girlfriend. I want to see her. Will I get to go home?" I asked hopefully.

"Yes, you will, but I don't think that's a good idea right now. There's a lot of fighting and gang violence around here right now. Another shot will probably send you to your death bed!" he warned me. "I suggest you don't go home for another week or two."

"Can I call her? Please?" I begged. The doctor gestured to the phone beside my bed. I smiled. Luckily, the phone was on my right side, so I had no problem reaching it. I dialed Santana's number. After two years without a cell phone, I still remembered her number.

"Hello?" she grumbled. My heart fluttered. She still had that same sexy voice.

"Santana, it's me."

"Brittany! Oh God, Brittany! Baby!"

I could hear sniffling and gasping for breath. "I missed you."

"I missed you, too. Where are you? Are you okay?" she asked in a worried voice.

"Actually, I got shot." I heard a short scream on the phone. "No, but don't worry! I only fractured a bone in my elbow and a bone in my neck. I'm still alive at least!"

"Where are you? I have to come see you!"

"No, Santana, please. Stay where you are. Don't come here! It's not safe."

"But are you coming home?"

"I will, but the doctor said it's not safe to leave yet. I'm sorry."

"Well when will you be home? You know…Valentine's Day is soon…and Mercedes is having a party on that day. It would be amazing if we could spend Valentine's Day with our Glee friends."

"Baby, I'll try. I promise. Just promise me you'll stay at home, okay?"

"Fine, I promise. Bye, Britt. I love you."

"I love you more!"

Santana's POV:

My heart was pounding wildly. So many things about that phone call were thought provoking. I was touched that Brittany still remembered my number after being away from me for two years. I was relieved that she was still alive. I was really hoping that she would be home for Valentine's Day.

I called Mercedes. "Brittany called me! She's coming home! I don't know when, but she is!" I exclaimed into the phone.

"That's great! We'll have all of the Glee club together. Rachel, Kurt, Blaine, and Finn are flying in from New York. Quinn and Puck are coming from California. Everyone is going to be there! It'll be like a big reunion!" she said excitedly.

"Well, she might not be home in time, but I hope she will be."

"Me too. I gotta go, girl. Bye!"

"Bye."

As I put my phone down, I looked out the window at the bar across the street. I wouldn't be needing that anymore.


	7. Chapter 7

Brittany's POV:  
>It had been exactly a week and four days since I woke up in the hospital. Every day, I had asked my doctor if I could go home yet. The doctor walked into my room early in the morning. I threw the blanket off my head with my good arm. "Can I-<p>

"Yes."

I sighed. Wait. Did he just say yes? "I can go home?" I asked excitedly.

"Yes, Brittany. The violence seems to have died down a bit. You can leave in the afternoon," he informed me.

"Thank you! Thank you! Thank you so much!" I exclaimed while bouncing on the hospital bed. "Ouch!" I should have known better. It's not a good idea to bounce when you've got an injured arm and neck.

The doctor chuckled. "Oh by the way, we stored away your possessions when you got here. You can get them out of that closet before you leave."

I hadn't even remembered those. I hoped my picture of Santana was still there.

"Why don't you have lunch before you leave?" the doctor suggested.

I clumsily got out of the bed. Even though the injuries weren't that bad, I still had some trouble moving around. The cast got in my way and the cloth wrapped around my neck was very uncomfortable. I took the elevator down the cafeteria. A lady at the cafeteria gave me a bowl of dull, brown soup. Bits of broccoli floated around in it. It's a pity that so many gummy bear forests had to be harmed just to make this soup. I tried to pick up a chunk of meat with the spoon, but it was hard if I couldn't hold the bowl with my other hand. After a long hour, I finally finished the soup.

I went back up on the elevator to get my bag out of the closet. I struggled with the zipper but eventually opened the bag. My precious picture was still there. I zipped it back up. I went to the front desk to take care of all the confusing business. Then finally, I was free.

_Three days later_

Santana's POV:

February 14th, Valentine's Day, and the day of Mercedes's party. I looked out the window, thinking that Brittany would just walk up to the door, but there was no sign of her. Mercedes's party was in an hour, so I decided to get ready. I looked through my closet. I had finally done laundry, and all the beer stains were gone. I picked out a white top and a pink mini skirt. I did my make up with dark shades of pink. I looked in the mirror. It seemed like I'd regained that sexy look I had in high school. I put on a pair of brown ankle boots and headed out the door.

I twirled the car keys in my hand. I rarely drove my car while Brittany was away. Hopefully, I would still remember how to drive! I backed out of the driveway slowly. My hands gripped the steering wheel awkwardly. After a few minutes, I was used to driving again. A few minutes later, I reached Mercedes's house.

My heart started beating faster. I was going to see all my old Glee friends again. I was excited, but scared that the same time. I hoped they didn't change too much. I pushed down on Mercedes's doorbell. It opened almost instantly. "Hey, girl!" she said with a smile and embraced me.

I stepped through the door and was tackled by a girl in a polka dot dress. "Santana! It's so great to see you again!" she cried. I took a second look at her and recognized that dramatic nose right away.

"Hey, dwarf! I missed you!" I hugged her tightly.

The next person to embrace me was a giant. "Cabbage Patch Kid! You're still a fetus face! Do you still have those awkward pyramid nipples?" I laughed.

"Miss you too Santana," Finn snorted.

After several more hugs, I finally sat down on Mercedes's couch. Everyone was here except for Brittany and Puck. We sat and talked for a while about everyone's lives. Rachel was on Broadway. Finn opened a sports store in New York. Artie became a rapper. Quinn became a play writer. Blaine and Kurt started a fashion business.

Mercedes came out of the kitchen with a tray full of glasses. It was a pinkish-red sparkly liquid. "Um, Mercy? What's in there?" I asked uncomfortably.

"Vodka, cranberry juice, and ice," she answered.

I frowned and thought for a minute. I remembered what Emily had told me. Well, I wasn't going to drink several glasses of it. Besides, it wasn't beer. Mercedes offered me a glass, and I thanked her. I sipped it slowly. The taste of the vodka wasn't too strong.

Suddenly, the doorbell rang. It was probably Puck. He was known for being fashionably late.

"I'll get it!" Mercedes chirped with a large grin on her face.

Brittany's POV:

My heart raced wildly as I waited on Mercedes's porch. On my way home, I had run into Mercedes earlier. We decided that I would surprise Santana by showing up at the party. She even bought me a change of clothes to wear. I was wearing a red sweater that fell off my shoulder with black leggings and silver flats. I hoped it would remind Santana of my cute outfits in high school.

Mercedes opened the door. "Hey, Brittany!" she whispered. She hugged me. "Let's go inside!" she said excitedly.

I stepped into the living room, and there she was. Santana rushed into my arms. "Santana, I missed you so much, baby. You got even prettier!"

"Brittany, oh Britt," she sobbed into my shoulder. We embraced each other tightly. Santana started to run her tongue along my ear. She held my head in her hands and kissed me. I moved my hands down her back, until I reached her ass.

"Oh shit Kurt what if we see boob and vagina!" I heard Blaine whisper to Kurt nervously.

Santana laughed and then kissed me again. We were interrupted by a ring. Mercedes ran to the door. "HEY GIRL HEY!" a voice shouted.

Noah Puckerman strolled into the living room. He was holding a case of beer. He held it up triumphantly.

I widened my eyes. Santana looked annoyed. "No thanks!" we said simultaneously. I looked at Santana and raised my eyebrows. I had a feeling I knew what had happened while I was away.

Puck wrinkled his forehead at us. "You guys loved getting drunk back in the day!" he complained.

"It's a long story!" Santana and I laughed.


End file.
